28. Chapter 27 Ginevra
Ipretend to go to work every day. I’m having a hard time telling Soren about what went down with my job. How can I when he continues to tell me how much he loves that I have a career? Then how do I tell him that even if I wanted to keep my job, I can’t because of who he and my brother are.
Today is no different. I grab my purse, trying to sneak out of the house while he’s in the shower. “Are you planning on leaving and not giving me a goodbye kiss?” his deep drawl echoes behind me.
I turn to face him, and see he’s only in a towel. His hair is wet and there’s still water dripping down his body. I watch with fascination as one particular rivulet drops down the valley of his muscles like a rollercoaster as his chest rises and falls with his short breaths. Gawd, my husband is magnificently handsome. It’s like he rushed through the shower to see me off.
“My eyes are up here, wife.” Amusement shines through his eyes as he takes three long strides and stands before me. “I am so proud of you, Ginevra. Your ambition and beauty are lethal.” He moves my hair behind my shoulders, stepping into me. I can feel his hard cock brush against my stomach. “Secretly, I love that you fought so hard to get the job you wanted and refused my family’s help. Your feistiness turns me on.”
He kisses me like I’m the most precious thing to him. My heart speeds up, and I hope he can’t hear how loud it’s beating. My guilt consumes me and I worry if I stay a second longer, he’ll see right through me.
I step away, breaking our kiss. His thumb rolls over my bottom lip while he stares at me like he loves me. Soren Moretti has fallen in love. I know he’s said the words, but I never thought I’d see the affection in his eyes.
The air between us crackles alive with electricity. If I don’t go out that door, I’ll end up naked and at that point I’m not sure I wouldn’t tell him the truth.
I give him one quick peck before I open the door. The warmth of his body against mine lingers on my skin, keeping away the chill of the winter air.
Iwalk into my old office building with my heart pounding. The guard isn’t at their post and I hustle into the elevator, leaving Soren’s watch dogs at ground level. I can only go up to the second floor before an access card is required. The elevator stops, and I step off, going toward the stairs. I rush down, exiting onto the street level. The back door opens into the alleyway and I scan the area. There are no guards in sight.
The winter air is crisp and whips around me. Soren’s warmth is long gone as I try to keep my hands warm by keeping them in the pocket of my thin dress coat. I flip the collar to try and cover my ears. I’ve been doing my own research into what Jude has been caught up in. None of it looks good, but I didn’t have to do extra digging to know that.
My phone vibrating catches my attention. “Hey, Sienna,” I answer, walking toward my destination.
“How’s married life treating you?” she asks.
“Good.” I sigh. “It’s actually perfect when it’s just him and me. I feel like it’s the outside world that wants to tear apart what we have.”
“What’s going on?” I exit the alleyway and catch the eyes of a stranger walking toward me. It gives me an eerie feeling and I cast my gaze down at the sidewalk.
“I’m going to need an hour to fill you in.” It feels wrong to tell her before Soren. I stop at a street corner and look up at the gray sky. It’s freezing out and the sun is covered with nasty looking gray clouds.
I’m scared of Soren’s reaction when I tell him I quit and that they asked me to give them information. My heart speeds up, not wanting to disappoint him. He doesn’t need extra stress from me, not when his family is dealing with what they do. He put guards on me because he doesn’t have time to make sure I’m okay himself.
“You are safe right?” she pries.
“I’m good. Call you later?”
“Is this one of those times I should be pushing you?” Sienna knows me well enough that I bottle up my emotions.
“No, I promise. I’ll call you later once I can talk more.”
I look back down the block. Should I go back and fake sick? Great, now I feel guilty for losing the bodyguards. I have to tell Soren tonight. That’s it. I can’t keep this lie up. It’s killing me on the inside.
The light turns green and the walking symbol blinks on. I should have brought a warmer coat. There’s a coffee shop two blocks away I can warm up in and have a coffee.
I have this urge to look over my shoulder to see if I’m being followed. I don’t know why today is the day I’m feeling like eyes are continually on me.
The wind blows harder and I pick up my pace, glancing behind me, unable to take the feeling any more, but nothing looks out of the ordinary.
Entering the coffee shop, the warm air blasts on my skin with a welcomed relief.
Once I’ve ordered my drink, I take a seat at a small couch and table in the corner of the shop. The toasty mug warms my hands and I pull out my computer from its case. I want to write down everything I’m going to say to Soren. If I can’t organize my thoughts, it’s going to be so much harder to voice them.
I stare at the blank page, my fingers itching to type all over the empty document.
Dear Soren…
I erase that.
I add a small circle for a bullet point.
My leg vibrates in place and my nerves have my entire body awakened. I can’t shake this feeling of someone watching me. My nostrils flare as I take a deep inhale and try to focus.
I quit my job. I type. I know you loved me working and I promise I’ll find another job.
I don’t want just any job. I delete the last part about the other job. I will do that, but I don’t feel like it should be the point of our conversation. It’s the investigation and the fact that I was asked to be an informant that I need to focus on. What if he doesn’t believe me that I turned them down?
I close the computer with a snap. This isn’t helping. I stare at my closed computer on the small table with my empty coffee mug.
I glance around the small coffee place. There are a few other people working on computers. I try to find where this feeling of unease is coming from.
It has to be my imagination because I feel guilty. I can’t stand this feeling anymore. I have to talk to my husband. Making my decision, I pack up, slinging the computer case over my shoulder.
I step back out into the cold. The wind has died down, but the temperature still nips at my ears. My hands cover them as I walk with my head down, trying to stay warm.
The coffee I drank sits uncomfortably in my stomach. This is why I prefer energy drinks. I increase my pace, not wanting to be outside any longer than necessary.
I’m blindsided and pushed against a large green metal garbage container. I drop my computer from my shoulder and the wind is forced out of my lungs.
A man has a blade pressed against my throat. He stares into my eyes with hatred shining clearly from his own. His breathing is laboured, hitting me in the face as his forearms press into the lower part of my neck, pinning me in place.
It takes a second for me to recognize the man, but when I finally do, my heart stills. The lack of oxygen has my head growing lighter by the second, but his blade is cold and sharp. I dare not move.
“You’re nothing special,” Karissa’s father sneers.
I take a small gasp of air and the sharp edge scrapes into me.
I’m going to die and I deserve this. I should have never deceived my guards. This is my punishment.
I fight against the tears that threaten to spill out of me. I don’t want this man to see me cry. He does not deserve my tears.
“I found my daughter, and she’s going to marry Soren now.”
The idea of Karissa having her cheating hands on Soren has my fight or flight instinct rearing its head. My heart begins to pound and I take a gasp of air, my body having chosen to fight.
“Over my dead body.” The burn of the blade is felt with each word.
“That’s the plan, darling.” He smiles at me and I can feel the trickle of blood run down my neck. This is it. I close my eyes, accepting my fate.
“Remove your hands from my wife,” Soren’s deep, murderous voice commands.
The pressure from the knife vanishes as he’s ripped away from me. I open my eyes and find my two guards holding him as he struggles to move while Soren stands in front of me.
“I’m sorry!” I blurt out.
Guilt, shame, and embarrassment cling to my rib cage. The pressure in my chest stings more than my neck. My arms wrap around Soren and his strong arms lift me into him. I’m finally able to breathe easier knowing I’m safe in his arms.
“I’m sorry.” I repeat with silent tears running down my cheeks.
He holds me tight. “Take him away. No one touches him until I get there.”
Soren’s hands feather over my neck and a growl escapes his throat. “I don’t know if I should spank you or kiss you. You scared the fuck out of me when my men told me they lost you. I was so worried.”
He carries me to the front of the building, even when I try to put my feet down to walk.
He refuses to let me go when we get into the back of a car. He holds me in his lap.
I go to say I’m sorry again but he places his two fingers at my lips. “Don’t talk. I want the doctor to check you over first.”
Soren is as quiet as I am. He’s holding me tight, like he’s afraid I’ll disappear, but his face is stoic. I can’t get a read on what he’s thinking.
Could he already know about Conrad’s offer? Maybe he’s considering ways to dispose of my body. The mafia does things like that, right? It’s not just in books and movies?
The doctor looks me over and bandages my scrape. It’s not deep and won’t leave a scar.
The moment the door closes from the doctor leaving, Soren stares at me, his lips press into a thin line. The mask he typically wears to hide his emotions has slipped and I’m not sure which one I hate more.
I can’t hold his stare, so I walk past him to turn on the kettle in an attempt to busy myself, grabbing a mug and my loose tea while I wait. I study the containers as if choosing a tea is the most important thing in the world.
Soren is quiet. Too quiet.
“We need to talk,” he replies, his voice eerily calm as he takes a seat at our island.
I keep my back to him, fiddling with the tea, trying to decide how to respond.
“I know.” I shake out the tea into the holder. It spills over the edges and too much fills my steeper.
He wraps his arms around my torso and I jump. He spins me, tilting my face so our eyes can connect again. He knows I’m lying. I can see the disappointment cloud his features. His hands thread through my hair and I stay deadly still.
“I quit my job,” I blurt.
“I know.”
What?
“My guards have been following you each day when you pretended to go into work. I was trying to wait for you to tell me. What I don’t understand is why you thought you had to keep it a secret.”
I shiver in his hold and the room temperature plummets. It’s as if I was standing outside naked.
Soren is holding onto my forearms, and his grip tightens into a firm-but-gentle hold. A dark storm brews in his eyes and I hate that I’m the reason for it. The pressure of my guilt rises until I’m filled with panic and dread, until I break.
“I was scared to tell you.” My shoulders slump forward in his embrace. My smile wobbles as I try to stay strong, it slips entirely as I continue. “The firm is investigating a drug ring, and they wanted me to be an informant and give them information on you and Jude.” My chin quivers and tears glisten, distorting my vision until I feel them fall over my thick lashes, warming my cold cheeks.
Soren’s body visibly tenses and his jaw ticks, his eyes not leaving mine.
“They think…” Each word is difficult to push past my throat. “They think…” There isn’t enough oxygen in my throat to get the whole sentence out in one breath. My breathing is choppy as I fight to get control of my body.
“They think I could have sabotaged the case. If I didn’t quit, they would have fired me anyway.”
The lines etched in his face deepen, and his jaw ticks again as his molars grind back and forth. He says nothing, so I wait, the seconds making the air thicker, more turbulent with tension.
Soren strokes my cheek, tears catching on his finger. I cast my eyes down, hating the predicament I’m in. I wish I could read him and know what he’s thinking.
“What can I do to make it better?”
My eyes snap to his, not expecting the response. Concern shines through, and the adoration from this morning is still there. He brings me in for a hug and rubs my back.
“Just hold me. It feels so good to finally talk about this.” My voice is scratchy, and having Soren hold me is my undoing. A sob breaks loose. It comes out with such force that another one follows. I can’t stop them, and they take all my oxygen. I gasp for air as I cry, and Soren doesn’t stop holding me.
My mother hated the sound of crying. Even at my father’s funeral, I wasn’t allowed to “make a scene.”
I press my face into his chest, trying to hide. Eventually, I’m able to catch my breath and my sobs turn to sniffles. Soren’s warmth is the only thing keeping my goosebumps at bay. All the weight on my shoulders has been lifted. I wish I would have come out and told him right away.
Soren is my rock. He would never hurt me.